The mayor, who took office in June, is seen by most pundits as simply waiting for the end of the Paralympics in Rio to announce that City Hall will not be supporting the bid, which would scupper its chances of success. She is due to give a press conference at 1330 GMT.

Raggi had continually repeated in her election campaign that the Games were not a priority for the Eternal City, a stance shared by the leader of the Five Star Movement, Beppe Grillo. Raggi made it clear she does not regard the Olympic bid a good idea for the cash-strapped city, but stopped short of saying she will not back it and had previously suggested holding a referendum to decide whether to host the games.

Prime Minister Renzi has deplored the party’s stand, and dismissed their contention that the money use to host the Games could be better spent.

Rome, which last hosted the Olympics in 1960, had been one of four candidates to host the Olympics in 2024 along with Paris, Budapest and Los Angeles. The quartet must submit the second part of their candidacy by October 7th.